Change dispensing mechanism for merchandising machines



March 4, 1958 c. GABRIELSEN CHANGE DISPENSING MECHANISM FOR MERCHANDISING MACHINES Filed June 7. 1952 2 Sheets-Sheet l Illllllfl /ll'l"lllllllfllllll I'll; II'NIIIIII .llllll lf'l'lilfillil/ .f. E L

Ellll INVETOR. CHE/S T/HA/ GHBP/ELSEA/ qrrokA/sy March 4, 1958 c. GABRIELSEN 2,825,346

I CHANGE DISPENSING MECHANISM FOR MERCHANDISING MACHINES Filed June 7. 1952 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 AQMLQQMV F7 7'TORA/EY United States Patent CHANGE DISPENSING MECHANISM FOR WRQHANDISENG IHACHINES Christian Gahrielsen, Mountain Lakes, N. J., assignor to Rowe DIanufacturing Co., 1112., Whippany, N. J., a corporation of New York Application June 7, 1952, Serial No. 292,292

Claims. (Cl. 133--2) My invention relates to a change dispensing mechanism for merchandising machines and more particularly to an improved change dispensing mechanism of increased capacity and simplicity in construction and dependability in operation.

In my copending application Serial No. 768,997, filed August 16, 1947, for coin register assembly for coin controlled vending machines, now Patent No. 2,704,590, I have shown a coin register having a plurality of slides adapted to be selectively freed by a plurality of coins aggregating a predetermined amount and have shown a system for giving change.

The instant invention is a simplified construction for giving change of one nickel when operating a merchandising machine with a quarter deposit for a 20 purchase.

Most brands of cigarettes today are sold for either twenty cents or twenty-five cents in merchandising machines and it has been found that the majority of sales are made for a quarter. in'rny copending application means are provided for replenishing a reservoir with nickels. Where the majority of sales are made for a quarter the nickel supply is not replenished and it is found desirable in many locations to provide a supply of nickels for change in coin tubes. If we place a quantity of nickels equal to the 20 merchandise in the machine we will be sure that the machine will operate to dispense all of the 20 merchandise.

One object of my invention is to provide a change dispensing mechanism of increased capacity for merchandising machines. 7

Another object of my invention is to provide a change dispensing mechanism adapted selectively to give change in response to a sensing mechanism associated with a coin register. 9

Another object of my invention is to provide a change dispensing mechanism Which is certain in operation and inexpensive in construction.

Other and further objects of my invention will appear from the following description.

For purposes of convenience I will describe my change maker in connection with a merchandising machine set to dispense merchandise for twenty cents with a coin register of the type shown in my copending application. In this there are four slides, one adapted to be freed for four nickels, one adapted to be freed for a dime and two nickels, one adapted to be freed for two dimes, and one adapted to be freed for a quarter. Whenever one of the slides of the coin register is freed the merchandising machine will operate. The merchandising machine may be of any suitable type such as shown in my Patent No. 2,546,690, dated March 27, 195 1. In this patent, whenever one of the coin register slides is freed, an electric motor will operate to rotate a cam to oscillate a bell crank. The oscillation of the bell crank operates an operating bar and a match dispensing mechanism.

In general, my invention contemplates driving my change dispensing mechanism from this bell crank,

though it is to be uderstood that any moving .part associated with the vending mechanism of a vending machine may be readily employed to furnish the power for my change dispensing mechanism. The arrangement is such that the operating mechanism will operate each time. A coupling device is provided adapted to couple the operating mechanism with the change dispensing mechanism. Normally, the coupling device is uncoupled and no change is given. When, however, change is called for by the operation of the quarter slide, the coupling mechanism is operated and change is dispensed. In order to provide increased capacity, two coin tubes are provided which are set into use alternately. This avoids too 'high a column of nickels and prevents the creation of large forces requiring heavy parts.

In the accompanying drawings which form part of, the instant specification and which are. to be read in conjunction therewith, and in which like reference numerals are used to indicate like parts in the various views:

Figure 1 is an elevation of a portionof my change dispensing mechanism showing one embodimentof my invention.

Figure 2 is a side elevation of the change dispensing mechanism shown in Figure I viewed along the line 22 of Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a fragmentary view showing another portion of the change dispensing mechanism. 1

Figure 4 is a fragmentary sectional view taken along the line 4-4 of Figure 3.

Referring now to Figure 1, there is shown in dotted lines the position of the coin slides of a coin register such as is shown in my copending application above referred to. The slide 10 operates in the examplegiven for four nickels. The slide 12 operates for a quarter. The slide 14 operates for two nickels and a dime, and the slide 16 operates for a dime. operate they move from right to left as viewed in Figure 1 It is to be understood that any suitable mechanism for sensing when change is to be given known to the art may be employed. All that is necessary is that an element move from right to left in response to a demand for change. The frame 18 of a merchandising machine of any appropriate construction carries a pivot pin 20 on which is mounted a pivoted pawl 22 freely rotatable about the pin 20. A stationary stop pin 24 is mounted on the frame 18 and limits the downward movement under the influence of gravity of the pawl 22. It will be seen that the slides 14 and 16 clear the pawl so that their movement to the left will not affect it. Similarly, the upper slide 10 is adapted to move into a notch 26 clear of the pawl proper. The slide 12, however, is adapted to contact the pawl 22 so that when it moves to the left the pawl will rotate in a clockwise direction. A second pawl 30 is provided with a flange 32 adapted to contact the upper surface of the first pawl 22. The second pawl 30 is pivotally mounted on a pin 34 carried by the crank arm 36 of a bell crank 38 which is pivotally mounted about a shaft 40 carried by the frame 18. The arm 36 of the bell crank is pivotally connected by pin 42 to an operating link indicated generally by the reference numeral 44. This link is formed with an upper portion 46 and a lower section 48. The lower section is pivotally connected through pin 50 to the end 52 of the operating bell crank of the merchandising machine. This bell crank is adapted to pivot about an axis shaft 54 such that the end 52 will move upwardly and then return during each operation of the merchandising machine. The connection may be advantageously made through the link 56 which operates a match delivery mechanism, such as is shown in my Patent No. 2,546,690

When the slides a more fully hereinafter.

iae.-912 at nj ;1ia 1 5; The-motion is transmittedthrough the bracket 58 and the pin 0. Thus it )e s e en.that

nitra io 9 th.? v fi mmh na a fli ill b rea y aaderstoo y t qs kili lin vt ea Iheupp m b914 6 ofthe changemechanism operating linkgcarries" aip .fi wh ehi securedtheretd and, lod d in -..a slot 2.- sec n Pin 63 i i e i m'. .d y t upp section of the. change rnechanism v operating link 44 and positionedimthe slot. The two pins 60 and 63 serve.

to rnaintain"the' upper and lower-sections 46 and 48 of the,l1nk,j44 inaalignmenti A pin 64 is secured tothe V 62;? Itwill be readily" appreciated furthermore, {that if we immobilize, the bell crank 3 8,-the motion of thefoperg ati'ng member of the. merchandising machine will'siniply 7 the lower member. of I the change mechanism operating link 44 is moved upwardlyxand downwardly'with each the slide.

1'2 wnmavezar tli'efift" a .antly withisetting .the .merchandis; r ingmachine into operation. The leftward motionofthe slide 12 rotates the pawl 22 in a'clockwise direction and thus rotates the second pawl 30 in a counterclockwise dh V rection, This brings the flange 32 behind the radial pin 7 80. When the pawl 30.;moves to'the left 'undenthe p influence of the operating 1ink"44,,and.theuconnectionof this pawl with thebellicrank 138, -it"will rotate'the'cam 7 70 in a clockwise direction. "'Bellcrank38 and pawl 30 form a coupler. for coupling the drive ;member 52 tome a a cam 70 toirotatethe cam when'flange 32 has beenengaged "1 preventthis rotation.- Flange 94,i is' du1ing .the initial l move the'lowe'r section 48 of thelink 44 with respect o t igi f l i st e ch n t e sp i g-1 v This 7 construction-enables me to avoid close fitting ofthe change vdispferisingJoperating cam ers will be pointed out 7 Rptatably'vmountedon the shaft 40 I'jprovide 1a;cam*

170 provided with'a cam groove 72. fl'he, cam carries? radially extending pins 74, 7 6, :78 and 80 whichare placed 90?" apart, The framecarries a pin 82 on which is pivotally mounted a lever '84. Intermediate the ends of this lever and carried ,therehy I providefacam follower 8.6 whichispos'itioned in the can {track 7 2 When the rotates 90 from the position showninFiguretl During the next, 90" "rotation it-will move downwardly; h -.a "r n em a s t h hatel q pe t of i h mac n xw fm t 6 m 70,'9 .-;:;Ai ta. iQn y P n 8 ii s t bi" t ef i p l' y mountedon the. pinfl87i I'p'rovide a bent pawl orcanipositioner. 8.8.1, 'I'hejlower'arm of this pawl is provided witha flange: 9 lladapt'ed to'tcontactf the pixi -7 8 in' theposition shown inFi 'gurel. [The other arm92 of the pawlisjprovidedt jwi tha f an 4 ab i fita t h uppe -edg d h arm 96 of the :bell'jlcr ank .32}; u 7 Flange 94-1 controls the camjpositione'r 8,8 andflis operated by -thempperfifigQ 97 7 of arm 96. ,;In:the. positionls hown in Figure l {the upward.

motionpf thel'eft-hand arm 9215f the caropositioner'flii; V brings the fi' 'n 1 into contact with the-radial pin 7 8; of th'eleam' andpreyentsithe'cam from rotatingin acouni V trclockwise direction. When the operatingjinlc,44;rnoves upwardly the bell crzank 3, 8 will berotated in a clockwise direction; will carry the pawl 30 to-the left, A

part of'themovemengheld clearof thepinl7 6; As soon 1 as the upper arm 96 .of- .the bell .crank 38 .is moved: clear of the flange 9 4' it will' drop tot the edge'of the V cam 'but behind the p'in76 which hastin the meantime I moved to the right. Before the flange-i 32leaves the 1 pawl 22"lthe' inclined: step 1.0.4 at 'theglo wer surface of it i thevpawl'30 will haveengaged theguideLlOO, thus;maintaining the flange 32 in a position behind the radial 'pin V in order that continued rotati'on'ofth e Ibellcrank 38' J continue-torotatej the cam 70. Step104 is', therefore,

a :follower carried by the coupler'formed'by bell crank 38 and pawl '30 and cooperateswith'thestationary-cam 100 to maintain the engagement .of flange 32 with one of V thepins 74 10-80. Shortlyafterthe merchandising rnv a chine is setinto operation the coins, willbe accepted and I the mernber 12 will return to the right letting=thepawl:

' 22 drop-to itsv'original position;--1;As theirotation' of the cam 70 in a clockwisefdirection} continues;..the .pinf74y will contact the flange 94 sothat further' motionlof the i t t cam cannotfltake place. in 'a'clockwi'se direction. If the adjustment offparts is suchthatj after man ge- 94m 7 gages the radial pin 74;the link 44 continues tojmovea upwardly, allthat occurs is that the spring 66'=Wi1l str,etch,

preventing any part'frombeing subjected to undue stress V and possibly-becoming hent orbrokens ltjwill beseen 7 that the.tresilienttconstructionof the operating'link 44;

' allows me to avoid-a critical adjustment or construction.

' the return or downward motion .of the operatingflinklt direction.

contact with thejguidemernberlofl the fiange 32i'of the.

pan/1130' is brought substantially intocontact'with I1 6 edge of, the, cam 70. This 'movement, however; does not normally occurfluntil afterjthe pawl has movedtoi the position of the step.l 104, that is, pastgthe pinSO. V Aecordihglmthe pawl 30. will simply-ridearoundthe guide ember: 0 w h the flan c nt cting the e of I the cam' 70;. The 'clockwisevmotion ithe-bell crank fi b' fl esthe upperedge ofjhe am19 6free-ofthe flange 94 of thegbent pawl 8.8. Since therarm '92YiS longerand heavier than the arm '90,.the: bent pawl1'88 will rotate in a counterclockwisedirection as soon'as this occurs. The arrangement of parts is such thatzthis action willitake placebefore the camsurface 104 engages" the uide-. 9 The flange'94, therefore; lwillibe'permitted to P b h d e pin 76. This precludes.any.frictionbe *1 rotating the cam ina clockwise .directioni' When,-however,- change'is called-for bythe coin-register'offthe me 44' the bell crankSS, will rotate in atcounte'rclockw iseg. 7

The cam surface ,97 formed; at the uppen 1 'porti nof, he pp 'f 9,6Will engage the fiange 194 j and cam the bent pawl- 88 to rotateiin, a clockwise direct;

tion to the position shown in'jFigure 1 readyfor thenext cycle. It will be seenthat the pawl ,3flloperateslpeach; j time theiv'endi'ng; machine is operated. Itflisj, however};

normally uncoupled from the cam 70 which operates 70 operated.

' The lefthand bracket 15 4 'which carriesa shaft 15 6. Around the-shaft 160 -wil1;rotate around the -sl1aftil56 in a clockwise direc the change dispensing mechanismidirectlyf Whenever; i

change-iscalledforthis pawl 30'is coupledfandthecam it end ofl'ever 84fcarries a pin -10 which: 3 1

alink 152 is pivotallyconnected; Successive operations of the vending'rnachine will movethe pina nd hence the:- t

. link152 .alternately first upwardly and thendownwardly Referring vnow to, Figure 3, the frame 18 carries a" tion. When the link 152 moves downwardlyathe crank" willrotate around the shaft :156 in a'counterclocka wise direction, a A shelf is carried'by the frame 18? V in any suitable manner. Supported bythe shelflspro-f vide a pair of coin tube sockets 172 and 174 in whichh position a pair of respective coin tubes 176 and 178 adapted to hold the coins given in change, as for example, nickels. In practice I have found that each of the coin tubes may be made twelve inches long and thus hold one hundred and sixty nickels. This gives ample capacity for large merchandising machines. It will be observed that the coin tube sockets 172 and 174 have their lower edges spaced from the flange 180 of the shelf 170 through a distance slightly in excess of the thickness of a nickel. A coin dispensing slide 182 is mounted on top of the flange 180 between its upper surface and the coin tube sockets 172 and 174. The slide is formed with a pair of openings 184 which are circular and when in position underneath the coin tubes form an extension of the .coin tube socket so that the nickels in the coin tubes may pass into position resting upon the flange 180 and embraced by the circular opening 184. It will be seen that the slide 182 must be accurately positioned; This is the reason why I employ the positioning means comprising the bent pawl 88. This ensures that the slide will always be positioned alternately with the left-hand opening 184 in alignment with the coin tube 178 or with the right-hand opening 184 in alignment with the coin tube 176, as shown in Figure 3.

The position of parts shown in Figure 3 is such that a nickel has just been dispensed through the opening 190 formed in the flange 180 from the left-hand coin tube. This dispensing operation was occasioned by the link 152 moving downwardly and the rotation of the crank 160 in a counterclockwise direction to move the slide 182 to the right. A hopper 192 leading to a coin chute 194 returns the nickel to the purchaser through a coin return opening (not shown) formed in the merchandising machine as is well understood by those skilled in the art. Upon the next operation of the coin dispensing mechanism in which change is called for the link 152 will move upwardly under the influence of the lever 84, the cam follower 86 and the cam 70 which is rotated as hereinbefore described. In Figure 3 it will be observed that the bottom nickel of the coin tube 176 is now resting in the right-hand opening 184. When the slide moves to the left it will carry the nickel over the opening 190 and permit it to fall by gravity into the hopper 192 and thence to the coin return chute 194. At the same time the left-hand opening 184 will be moved into position to permit the bottommost nickel from the left-hand coin tube 178 to fall into position for the next change dispensing operation.

It will be seen that my construction has many advantages. I have provided a large coin capacity for change in a minimum amount of space and have avoided excessively long coin tubes by using a pair of coin tubes from which change is alternately removed. I have provided a simple means for accurately positioning the coin dispensing slide upon each operation. I have employed the motive power in connection with the merchandising machine with which my change dispensing mechanism is associated for operating the coin dispensing mechanism. The pawls 30 and 22 may be made of light metal so that a very slight force is required to couple the pawl 30 with the cam 70. In spite of the necessity for accurately positioning the coin dispensing slide the connections from the prime mover are such that they need not be too accurately constructed and a wide latitude in this connection may be permitted without disturbing the accuracy of the positioning of the coin slide 182. Due to the fact that the coin slide is driven from the same force which operates the merchandising machine itself, the slide 182 will be driven against the increased force occasioned by the friction due to the weight of a column of nickels a foot long in each of the coin tubes.

It will be understood, of course, that any movable part associated with any of the coin registers of the prior art calling for change may be employed to rotate the pawl 22. It will be also understood that by making the slide nickels, ten cents in change can be given. .It, will likewise be understood that while I have describedthe op eration of my coin dispensing mechanism in the giving of one nickel change for a quarter deposit for a 20 purchase, my change maker can be used in candy machines to give a nickel change upon the deposit of a dime for a 5 purchase.

It will be seen that I have accomplished the objects of my invention. I have provided a change dispensing mechanism of increased capacity adaptedto be used on merchandising machines of every description. I have provided a change dispensing mechanism adapted simultaneously to give change in response to the sensing mechanism associated with a coin register.

My improved change dispensing mechanism is certain in operation and inexpensive in construction. The parts associating my change dispensing mechanism with the prime mover of the merchandising machine proper: need not be accurately adjusted or constructed. Owing to my improved construction the coin slide of the change dispensing mechanism will be accurately positioned even though accuracy is not required in coupling my change dispenser to the prime mover.

It will be understood that certain features and subcombinations are of utility and may be employed without reference to other features and subcombinations. This is contemplated by and is within the scope of my claims. It is further obvious that various changes may be made in details within the scope of my claims without departing from the spirit of my invention. It is therefore to be understood that my invention is not to be limited to the specific details shown and described.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is:

1. In a change dispenser, a driven reciprocating part, a rotatably mounted cam, a coupler, a link connecting the reciprocating part and the coupler, normally disengaged engageable means carried by the coupler and the cam, a coupler actuator for engaging the normally disengaged means to rotate said cam as said reciprocating part is driven, a change-sensing means for operating the actuator, a change coin holder, a coin dispenser for dispensing coins from the holder, a cam follower controlled by the cam and means connecting the follower and the dispenser for moving the dispenser to dispense coins as change.

2. A change dispenser as in claim 1 including a cam positioner, stationary means adjacent the cam for mounting the positioner, interengageable means carried by the positioner and the cam adapted to angularly position the cam in its rotary movement, a cam positioner controller and means carried by the coupler for working the controller.

3. A change dispenser as in claim 1 including a stationary cam member, means for mounting the stationary cam member adjacent the coupler, a coupler follower carried by the coupler normally out of engagement with the stationary cam and means for bringing the coupler follower into contact with the stationary cam after a predetermined movement of the coupler whereby to maintain the normally disengaged engageable means in engaged relation after the coupler actuator has operated.

4. A change dispenser as in claim 1 in which said link comprises a pair of members relatively movable with respect to one another longitudinally thereof, biasing means for urging the members to form a link of lengthened dimensions, stop means for limiting the action of the biasing means, the construction being such such that if tlzie link encounters resistance, said biasing means will yiel 5. A change dispenser as in claim 1 in which the coupler comprises a crank mounted for oscillation coaxially with the axis of rotation of the cam and a pawl pivotally carried by the crank, said pawl being actuated by said coupler actuator to engage said normally disengaged 182 wide enough to accommodate the thickness of two means. 

